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It's easy to argue that Tom Hiddleston's Loki has had one of the most dynamic character arcs in the entire MCU (and one of the very best redemptions). Although his story has long been confirmed to continue in Avengers: Doomsday, the first look at the former God of Mischief in the movie's first full trailer likely surprised some people.
As seen at the end of Loki season 2, Thor's brother sacrificed everything to replace the failing Temporal Loom, preserving the various timelines and creating a far more diverse multiversal construct resembling the World Tree, one where branched timelines were allowed to flourish with true free will rather than being pruned. Having been transformed into a new kind of god, the strong implication was that Loki was giving up his own freedom for everyone else's, his glorious new purpose being to hold the timelines together for the sake of those he cared about.
All that being said, Loki's status quo in Avengers: Doomsday looks to be very different from how Loki season 2 ended and the implied permanence of his new role.
Surprisingly, Loki Is NOT On His Throne In Avengers: Doomsday's New Trailer
The ending of Loki season 2 left the former God of Mischief sitting on a throne, wearing a new crown and robes, and holding all the various timelines together, forming them into a new multiversal tree. Without a doubt, it's one of the Multiverse Saga's very best and most epic moments yet, a true act of sacrifice and redemption for a character who started as a major Avengers villain. However, this is not how we find Loki in Avengers: Doomsday's new trailer.
Rather than remaining on that throne, Loki is instead shown inside a house, wearing a similar TVA outfit he wore in earlier episodes of Loki season 2, and holding what appears to be a TVA access card/ID. As such, Loki's role looks to be far more active than many were likely expecting.
Given the understandable assumption that Loki would remain the heart of the multiverse, there had been plenty of speculation that Doctor Doom would be making him a key target, either to destabilize the multiverse and/or attempt to claim his power. Instead, it looks like Loki will be operating across realities, interacting with other heroes, and presumably trying to help prevent the multiversal crises on the way.
Has Loki Become Director Of The TVA?
The new TVA card feels like the biggest clue, as the printed design on the back appears to be Loki's multiversal tree. This raises the intriguing possibility that Loki himself might be leading the TVA. As for why he's no longer sitting on the throne keeping everything together, there may no longer be anything to maintain...
If we look to the original comics, the "Time Runs Out" prelude storyline to 2015's Secret Wars saw a devastating series of incursions wiping out the entire multiverse as multiple worlds collided, threatening the end of existence itself. This is what motivated The Illuminati to preemptively destroy worlds to save their own, an act of survival that still led to the deaths of trillions. As such, this very well may be the inspiration for the Avengers/Fantastic Four's conflict with the X-Men in Doomsday, as their three separate worlds look to be in danger of colliding in a massive incursion.
Furthermore, these three realities may be the last in existence, just like Earth-616 and Earth-1610 in the comics' Secret Wars. If that's indeed the case, Loki may no longer need to hold together an infinite number of timelines because so many have already been lost, which could then naturally free him up to take a more direct role to save what's left.
Either way, the new Doomsday trailer makes it clear: Loki's story does not end with him sitting alone beneath the branches of a new multiversal Yggdrasil. Instead, it stands to reason that he'll be one of the upcoming movie's most critical players.
Avengers: Doomsday releases in theaters December 18th from Marvel Studios.
